Former civil servants raise alarm over conflict of interest in Supreme Court's forest advisory panel

By A Representative

In a strongly worded open letter to the Chief Justice of India, 60 retired senior civil servants from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), and other central services have raised serious concerns over what they term a “conflict of interest” in the current composition of the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC), tasked with advising the Court in forest and environmental matters.

The signatories, all part of the Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG), expressed grave apprehension that the CEC—now comprising entirely of recently retired officials from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC)—may lack impartiality in ongoing litigation, particularly those challenging the Forest Conservation Amendment Act (FCAA), 2023.

The letter notes that the original CEC, established in 2002, included a mix of government officials and independent environmental experts and legal professionals, which ensured diverse perspectives and helped avoid bias. However, in a significant departure, the 2023 reconstitution of the CEC included only four retired MoEFCC officials—three former Indian Forest Service officers and one retired MoEFCC scientist—with no independent members from civil society or academia. "This new composition, which includes individuals who were deeply involved in the very policies and rules being challenged in court, creates an unacceptable conflict of interest," the letter states.

The FCAA, 2023, is currently under scrutiny in the Supreme Court, with multiple petitions asserting that it weakens protections for India’s forests. Petitioners have cited reductions in forest definitions, exemptions for certain projects, and policy shifts that allegedly favor industrial over ecological interests. The retired officials allege that several CEC members were directly involved in formulating and defending the FCAA while serving in government. One member, they point out, presented the Bill before a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), and the very same officials were instrumental in issuing controversial guidelines and memoranda that critics say undermine the 1996 Godavarman judgment, which provided a landmark interpretation of forest protection under Indian law. “It is difficult to believe that these individuals will now provide the Court with objective and independent advice that differs from the positions they held as government officials,” the letter cautions.

The CCG letter refers to the Supreme Court's May 22, 2025 order on the status of ‘zudpi’ forests in Maharashtra. The CEC had advised that these scrub forests—often home to critical and endangered species like the Indian grey wolf, Great Indian bustard, and Blackbuck—be opened up for compensatory afforestation. Although the Supreme Court partially relied on the CEC’s recommendation, it did not accept it in full, perhaps indicating judicial awareness of the concerns raised.

The letter recommends that the Court reconstitute the CEC to include renowned experts from outside the government—ecologists, wildlife scientists, and independent legal experts—to uphold the integrity of judicial oversight in forest matters. “We request the CJI to ensure that such a CEC is not allowed to advise the Honourable Court in the FCAA 2023 cases before it, or be part of other such important cases in the interest of the country’s forests, wildlife and ecological security,” the signatories urge.

Among the 60 signatories are some of India’s most respected retired civil servants, including Anita Agnihotri, former Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice; G.K. Pillai, former Union Home Secretary; N.C. Saxena, former Secretary, Planning Commission; Julio Ribeiro, former Director General of Police, Punjab; Meena Gupta, former Secretary, MoEF; Harsh Mander, former IAS and noted human rights advocate; and Avay Shukla, former Additional Chief Secretary (Forests), Himachal Pradesh.

The open letter comes at a time when India’s forest governance is increasingly under international and domestic scrutiny. Environmentalists and tribal rights activists have warned that recent policy changes could lead to accelerated deforestation, marginalization of indigenous communities, and weakening of environmental regulation. The Constitutional Conduct Group has previously issued public statements on threats to constitutional values, governance norms, and civil liberties. This latest intervention adds to a growing body of concern from former insiders about how environmental decisions are being made—and who gets to influence them.

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